Prison guards throughout the United States are refusing to get COVID-19 vaccination shots as cases rise in jails throughout the country, according to the Associated Press (AP).
The refusal by prison guards have caused great concern from public health experts as many are worried that these actions will jeopardize the ability to control the spread of the virus, the AP reported.
COVID-19 infection rates are significantly higher in prison than compared to the general population, according to information obtained by The Marshall Project and AP.
Toxic attitudes—prisons are high risk for #COVID19, yet when Florida correctional officer polled his colleagues in a private Facebook group: “Will you take the COVID-19 vaccine if offered?”
Over half: “Hell no.” Only 40 of 475 respondents said yes.— Eric Feigl-Ding (@DrEricDing) March 15, 2021
A Florida correctional officer posted a poll in a private Facebook group with his colleagues and asked about taking the vaccine, and the answer from more than half the respondents was an emphatic, “Hell no,” the AP reported.
A statewide survey among California prison employees revealed that half will wait to receive any vaccinations, while in Iowa another poll showed that a little more than fifty percent will wait, according to the AP. Similar percentages have been reported in surveys among prison employees in California and Massachusetts, the AP reported. (RELATED: Almost All The Inmates In Alaska’s Largest Prison Have Contracted COVID-19)
Rhode Island correctional officers have declined the vaccinations at higher rates than incarcerated people, medical director Dr. Justin Berk stated, according to the AP.
In December 2020, the Federal Bureau of Prisons announced they would prioritize correctional officers and health care staffers over inmates for vaccine distribution in December, CBS News reported.
A refusal to adhere to safety guidelines such as wearing masks, social distancing, poor hygiene and downplaying people’s symptoms have led to an acceleration in outbreaks among prisons throughout the country, the AP reported.
Prison systems began to offer vaccines to their employees in December and January, according to the AP. Data shows that more than 106,000 prison employees throughout the country have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, information compiled by the AP and The Marshall Project showed.